Head of a Man

1943

Limbour brings Jean Paulhan to his studio

In 1943 his childhood friend, the writer Georges Limbour, took Jean Paulhan to Dubuffet's studio; the artist's work was unknown at that time. Paulhan was impressed and the meeting proved a turning point; in 1944 an important relationship between the two began.

1944

First solo show at Galerie René Drouin

Dubuffet's first solo show opened in October 1944 at the Galerie René Drouin in Paris, marking his third attempt to become an established artist.

1945

He begins collecting art brut

In 1945 Dubuffet began to collect art brut, “raw” art close to the work of children, the self-taught and the mentally ill; the collection is now in Lausanne.

1945

Fautrier's show and the thick paste

In 1945 Dubuffet saw a show of Jean Fautrier's paintings in Paris, in which he recognized meaningful art that expressed the depth of a person directly and purely. Emulating Fautrier, he began mixing thick oil paint with mud, sand, coal dust, pebbles, glass, straw, plaster, cement and tar, and made scratches and slashes in the paste.

1946

Pierre Matisse's New York show: success in America

Dubuffet was included in the Pierre Matisse Gallery exhibition in New York alongside Picasso, Braque and Rouault, one of only two young artists so honored. Clement Greenberg wrote positively about his three canvases, and Newsweek dubbed him the darling of Parisian avant-garde circles.

1947

First solo exhibition in America

In 1947 Dubuffet had his first solo exhibition in America, at the same Pierre Matisse Gallery. Reviews were largely favorable, and he went on to exhibit there at least once a year.